from the?thanks-for-providing-this-valuable-info-via-our-mandatory-vehicle-registration-p?dept
Fun, dubious, privacy-violating stuff happening out in Texas where the Dept. of Motor Vehicles has made a tidy sum selling the information it collects (including names, addresses and makes/models owned) to a variety of private companies.
The Texas DMV claims its ?top priority? is protecting drivers? information, but?that hardly seems to be the case when it?s pulling in $2.1 million a year selling it off. There are protections in place, but they are flimsy at best.
?The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles is the custodian of over 22 million currently registered vehicles in the state of Texas,? Randy Elliston, Director of the Texas DMV, explained. ?All of those records that are in our database, however, are protected under the Driver Privacy Protection Act.?
Randy Elliston says the Driver Privacy Protection Act (DPPA) limits who can buy your information and what they can do with it.
It would be interesting to see what these ?limits? are. The?spreadsheet obtained by CBS 11 of Dallas, TX?shows that 2,448 different entities purchased this information from the DMV last year. The purchasers listed range from towing companies to debt collectors to university parking lot patrols. Elliston states that the purchasing companies are not allowed to use the information for direct contact or advertising purposes.
A brief look at the spreadsheet seems to indicate the opposite: auto dealers make up the largest percentage of purchasers. Moreover, Elliston seems to have his facts wrong on the Driver Privacy Protection Act, at least as it pertains to Texas drivers.
The Driver Privacy Protection Act is a federal law. And the fine print actually says businesses can use your information for marketing or solicitations if the state has obtained your consent. That means, some drivers can opt in or out of these databases.
Problem is ??Texas didn?t adopt that portion of the law. So, drivers in the Lone Star State are stuck.
This has opened up driver data to nearly anyone who wants it. The spreadsheet shows insurance companies, debt collection agencies, title loan specialists, towing services and auctioneers all have access to these records. The response from Elliston? If you don?t like it, complain about it.
Contact: Cheryl Dybas cdybas@nsf.gov 703-292-7734 National Science Foundation
Discovery resulted from study of amphibians in ponds
The richer the assortment of amphibian species in a pond, the more protection that community of frogs, toads and salamanders has against a parasitic infection that can cause severe deformities, including the growth of extra legs.
The findings, published in a paper in this week's issue of the journal Nature, support the idea that greater biodiversity in large-scale ecosystems, such as forests or grasslands, may also provide greater protection against diseases, including those that affect humans.
A larger number of mammal species in an area may curb cases of Lyme disease, while a larger number of bird species may slow the spread of West Nile virus.
"How biodiversity affects the risk of infectious diseases, including those of humans and wildlife, has become an increasingly important question," said Pieter Johnson, an ecologist and evolutionary biologist at the University of Colorado Boulder, and the lead author of the paper.
"But as it turns out, solidly testing these links with realistic experiments has proven very challenging in most systems."
Researchers have struggled to design comprehensive studies that could illuminate the possible connection between disease transmission and the number of species living in complex ecosystems.
Part of the problem is the enormous number of organisms that may need to be sampled, and the vast areas over which those organisms may roam.
This study overcame that problem by studying smaller, easier-to-sample ecosystems, the scientists say.
"The research reaches the surprising conclusion that the entire set of species in a community affects susceptibility to disease," said Doug Levey, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF)'s Division of Environmental Biology, which funded the research. "Biodiversity matters."
Johnson and colleagues visited hundreds of ponds in California, recording the types of amphibians living there as well as the number of snails infected by the pathogen Ribeiroia ondatrae.
Snails are an intermediate host used by the parasite during part of its life cycle.
"One of the great challenges in studying the diversity-disease link has been collecting data from enough replicate systems to differentiate the influence of diversity from background 'noise,'" Johnson said.
"By collecting data from hundreds of ponds and thousands of amphibian hosts, we were able to provide a rigorous test of this hypothesis, which has relevance to a wide range of disease systems."
The researchers buttressed field observations with laboratory tests designed to measure how prone to infection each amphibian species is, and by creating pond replicas using large plastic tubs stocked with tadpoles that were exposed to a known number of parasites.
All the experiments told the same story.
Greater biodiversity reduced the number of amphibian infections and the number of deformed frogs.
The scientists spent three years sampling 345 wetlands and recording malformations--which include missing, misshapen or extra sets of hind legs--caused by parasitic infections in 24,215 amphibians.
The results showed that ponds with half a dozen amphibian species had a 78 percent reduction in parasite transmission compared to ponds with just one amphibian species.
The reason for the decline in parasitic infections as biodiversity increases is likely related to the fact that ponds add amphibian species in a predictable pattern, with the first species to appear being the most prone to infection and the later species to appear being the least prone.
The researchers found that in a pond with just one type of amphibian, that amphibian was almost always the Pacific chorus frog, a creature that's able to rapidly reproduce and quickly colonize wetland habitats, but which is also especially vulnerable to infection and parasite-induced deformities.
On the other hand, the California tiger salamander was typically one of the last species to be added to a pond community--and also one of the most resistant to parasitic infection.
Therefore, in a pond with greater biodiversity, parasites have a higher chance of encountering an amphibian that is resistant to infection, lowering the overall success rate of transmission between infected snails and amphibians.
This same pattern--of less diverse communities being made up of species that are more susceptible to disease infection--may well play out in more complex ecosystems, Johnson said.
That's because species that disperse quickly across ecosystems appear to trade off the ability to quickly reproduce with the ability to develop disease resistance.
The recent study also reinforces the connection between deformed frogs and parasitic infection.
In the mid-1990s reports of frogs with extra, missing or misshapen legs skyrocketed, attracting widespread attention in the media and motivating scientists to try to figure out the cause.
Johnson was among the researchers who found evidence of a link between infection with Ribeiroia and frog deformities, though the apparent rise in reports of deformations, and its underlying cause, remained controversial.
While the new study has implications beyond parasitic infections in amphibians, it does not mean that an increase in biodiversity always results in a decrease in disease, Johnson said.
Other factors also affect rates of disease transmission.
For example, a large number of mosquitoes hatching in a particular year increases the risk of contracting West Nile virus, even if there has been an increase in the biodiversity of the bird population.
Birds act as "reservoir hosts" for West Nile virus, harboring the pathogen indefinitely with no ill effects, then passing on the pathogen.
"Our results indicate that higher diversity reduces the success of pathogens in moving between hosts," Johnson said.
"But if infection pressure is high, there will still be a significant risk of disease. Biodiversity will simply dampen transmission success."
###
Co-authors of the paper are Dan Preston and Katie Richgels of the University of Colorado Boulder, and Jason Hoverman of Purdue University.
In addition to NSF, the research was funded by the National Geographic Society and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation.
-NSF-
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Contact: Cheryl Dybas cdybas@nsf.gov 703-292-7734 National Science Foundation
Discovery resulted from study of amphibians in ponds
The richer the assortment of amphibian species in a pond, the more protection that community of frogs, toads and salamanders has against a parasitic infection that can cause severe deformities, including the growth of extra legs.
The findings, published in a paper in this week's issue of the journal Nature, support the idea that greater biodiversity in large-scale ecosystems, such as forests or grasslands, may also provide greater protection against diseases, including those that affect humans.
A larger number of mammal species in an area may curb cases of Lyme disease, while a larger number of bird species may slow the spread of West Nile virus.
"How biodiversity affects the risk of infectious diseases, including those of humans and wildlife, has become an increasingly important question," said Pieter Johnson, an ecologist and evolutionary biologist at the University of Colorado Boulder, and the lead author of the paper.
"But as it turns out, solidly testing these links with realistic experiments has proven very challenging in most systems."
Researchers have struggled to design comprehensive studies that could illuminate the possible connection between disease transmission and the number of species living in complex ecosystems.
Part of the problem is the enormous number of organisms that may need to be sampled, and the vast areas over which those organisms may roam.
This study overcame that problem by studying smaller, easier-to-sample ecosystems, the scientists say.
"The research reaches the surprising conclusion that the entire set of species in a community affects susceptibility to disease," said Doug Levey, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF)'s Division of Environmental Biology, which funded the research. "Biodiversity matters."
Johnson and colleagues visited hundreds of ponds in California, recording the types of amphibians living there as well as the number of snails infected by the pathogen Ribeiroia ondatrae.
Snails are an intermediate host used by the parasite during part of its life cycle.
"One of the great challenges in studying the diversity-disease link has been collecting data from enough replicate systems to differentiate the influence of diversity from background 'noise,'" Johnson said.
"By collecting data from hundreds of ponds and thousands of amphibian hosts, we were able to provide a rigorous test of this hypothesis, which has relevance to a wide range of disease systems."
The researchers buttressed field observations with laboratory tests designed to measure how prone to infection each amphibian species is, and by creating pond replicas using large plastic tubs stocked with tadpoles that were exposed to a known number of parasites.
All the experiments told the same story.
Greater biodiversity reduced the number of amphibian infections and the number of deformed frogs.
The scientists spent three years sampling 345 wetlands and recording malformations--which include missing, misshapen or extra sets of hind legs--caused by parasitic infections in 24,215 amphibians.
The results showed that ponds with half a dozen amphibian species had a 78 percent reduction in parasite transmission compared to ponds with just one amphibian species.
The reason for the decline in parasitic infections as biodiversity increases is likely related to the fact that ponds add amphibian species in a predictable pattern, with the first species to appear being the most prone to infection and the later species to appear being the least prone.
The researchers found that in a pond with just one type of amphibian, that amphibian was almost always the Pacific chorus frog, a creature that's able to rapidly reproduce and quickly colonize wetland habitats, but which is also especially vulnerable to infection and parasite-induced deformities.
On the other hand, the California tiger salamander was typically one of the last species to be added to a pond community--and also one of the most resistant to parasitic infection.
Therefore, in a pond with greater biodiversity, parasites have a higher chance of encountering an amphibian that is resistant to infection, lowering the overall success rate of transmission between infected snails and amphibians.
This same pattern--of less diverse communities being made up of species that are more susceptible to disease infection--may well play out in more complex ecosystems, Johnson said.
That's because species that disperse quickly across ecosystems appear to trade off the ability to quickly reproduce with the ability to develop disease resistance.
The recent study also reinforces the connection between deformed frogs and parasitic infection.
In the mid-1990s reports of frogs with extra, missing or misshapen legs skyrocketed, attracting widespread attention in the media and motivating scientists to try to figure out the cause.
Johnson was among the researchers who found evidence of a link between infection with Ribeiroia and frog deformities, though the apparent rise in reports of deformations, and its underlying cause, remained controversial.
While the new study has implications beyond parasitic infections in amphibians, it does not mean that an increase in biodiversity always results in a decrease in disease, Johnson said.
Other factors also affect rates of disease transmission.
For example, a large number of mosquitoes hatching in a particular year increases the risk of contracting West Nile virus, even if there has been an increase in the biodiversity of the bird population.
Birds act as "reservoir hosts" for West Nile virus, harboring the pathogen indefinitely with no ill effects, then passing on the pathogen.
"Our results indicate that higher diversity reduces the success of pathogens in moving between hosts," Johnson said.
"But if infection pressure is high, there will still be a significant risk of disease. Biodiversity will simply dampen transmission success."
###
Co-authors of the paper are Dan Preston and Katie Richgels of the University of Colorado Boulder, and Jason Hoverman of Purdue University.
In addition to NSF, the research was funded by the National Geographic Society and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation.
-NSF-
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Brad Bird's "Tomorrowland" is close to casting a formidable villain. It's being reported that Hugh Laurie is in talks to play the top-secret project's antagonist. The Hollywood Reporter has the news about Laurie, though no hints as to who his character is or why he will act as a villain. In fact, very few details [...]
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Thomson Reuters' revenue and margin forecast for 2013 failed to impress Wall Street and the shares fell 2.4 percent, overshadowing bullish remarks from Chief Executive James Smith that his turnaround plan was gaining traction.
The global news and information company posted a better-than-expected rise in quarterly profit on Wednesday and forecast that revenue would increase in the low single digits this year. The outlook was largely anticipated by analysts, who had forecast a 2 percent rise.
The margin for earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization is expected to be in the range of 26 percent and 27 percent in 2013, lower than the 2012 performance of 27.4 percent.
"It looks like another year where the overall growth will be muted," said Claudio Aspesi, a senior analyst at Sanford Bernstein & Co.
Smith said the company was halfway through his turnaround plan because of product improvements and stabilization in Europe and that he expects revenue to rebound. "The success we are having today doesn't start showing up until next year," Smith said in an interview.
"It's like night and day. We are in a different place."
Smith said he expected Financial & Risk net sales to turn positive in the second half of the year. This an important gauge of future performance because subscription-based revenue typically lags sales by 12 months.
Financial & Risk, which accounts for 54 percent of total revenue, has struggled in recent years following a troubled launch for its flagship desktop product Eikon, which is aimed at bankers, hedge fund managers, and other financial industry professionals.
Cost cutting by banks after the financial crisis compounded the difficulties, especially in Europe.
Smith said the company expects to cut 2,500 jobs in the Financial & Risk division, or about 4 percent of its total global staff, in 2013. The company said it plans to spend $100 million in severance this quarter.
"At the end of the day, 2012 was supposed to be a transition year and now they are talking about 2013," said Swami Shanmugasundaram, an analyst with Morningstar.
UPSIDE SURPRISE
Thomson Reuters said revenue from ongoing businesses in the fourth quarter rose 2 percent before currency changes to $3.36 billion, roughly in line with expectations. It was not immediately clear what the change in costs was on the same basis.
Click here for graphic: http://link.reuters.com/kax85t
Adjusted earnings increased to $497 million, or 60 cents per share, from $445 million, or 54 cents per share, a year earlier, beating analysts' average forecast for 55 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Profit in the quarter increased on the back of "continued cost containment and lower reorganization costs", the company said. Organic revenue was flat.
"They have worked very hard on cost and the efforts should be acknowledged," Aspesi said.
The number of Eikon desktops installed rose 33 percent in the fourth quarter from the previous quarter to 33,900.
For the fourth quarter, revenue at the Financial & Risk division increased 1 percent due to growth in its Governance, Risk & Compliance business and its acquisition of electronic foreign exchange platform FXall.
Revenue in the division's Europe, Middle East and Africa region and in Asia was down 3 percent, respectively, while the Americas gained 6 percent.
At its legal division, which includes WestlawNext, revenue rose 2 percent in the quarter to $861 million. Thomson Reuters recently acquired London-based Practical Law Company, which provides guidance and analysis tailored to specific areas of the law.
Full year revenue at Thomson Reuters rose 3 percent to $12.89 billion. Bloomberg LP, which competes with Thomson Reuters on many fronts but gets the bulk of its revenue from terminal sales to financial institutions, said on Wednesday that revenue for 2012 rose 4.5 percent to $7.9 billion.
The board approved a 2 cent annual dividend increase to $1.30 per share.
Thomson Reuters' New York and Toronto listed shares were down 2.6 percent at $29.88 and C$29.93, respectively.
(Reporting by Jennifer Saba; Editing by Edward Tobin and Toni Reinhold)
Every week, we share the shortcuts, workspaces, and productivity tips of our favorite experts and internet personalities. This week, however, we're giving you guys a glimpse into how we work, and all the tips and tricks that keep our blogging wheels spinning. Today, I'm running through my favorite gear, gadgets, apps, devices, and tricks to stay productive when I'm on, and to have fun when I'm off.
The last time we did this series I was a pretty cross platform guy. Nothing's changed there, and most of my hardware is still the same, but I've been making some small changes here and there as I get more comfortable with my flow.
Location: Washington, DC Current Gig: Writer, Lifehacker One word that best describes how you work: Efficient Current mobile device: Motorola Droid Bionic, running Android 4.0.4 (Ice Cream Sandwich.) Also in the drawer: an iPad 3 (iOS 6.1), a Motorola Droid (Original), running MIUI (Gingerbread), and a rooted Nook Simple Touch. Current computer: Ganymede, my 15" MacBook Pro (2010), Deneb, my custom-built Windows PC (Win 7), and when I'm really bored, Europa, my 15" MacBook Pro (2008) running Ubuntu.
What apps/software/tools can't you live without?
On the desktop side, it would be a pretty bad day if I couldn't use Google Docs/Drive, or fire up Sparrow (Postbox on my Windows machine) to keep my multiple Gmail accounts under control. Luckily, all it's taken up to this point is an itchy delete finger and effective Gmail filters. It'd also be a pretty bad day if I couldn't use Dashlane to manage my passwords and logins. I gave it a trial run not too long ago, and really fell in love with it. I still love LastPass, but I've been loving Dashlane's secure checkout options lately, and it's free.
Reeder keeps me up to date on the news both on my Mac and on my iPad, and if I have a choice, I tend to read my feeds on my iPad. On the Android side, I don't know where I'd be without Camera ZOOM FX, since I use it far more often than I carry my beloved Sony Alpha NEX-5N around with me. Oh, and of course Pandora, since I plug my phone into my head unit in the car anyway?Pandora has all but replaced the radio at home and on the road for me. Yay for unlimited data!
What's your workspace setup like?
It's a little cleaned up for this photo (I usually keep a few toys on my desk just to fiddle with when I'm thinking) but I try to keep it as tidy as possible. The lamp there pulls double duty as a light source and a webcam stand?my Loigtech HD C920 (which I bought on the Hive's reccomendation) is mounted there using a Joby Gorillapod, so when I do Google Hangouts or Skype calls the camera is close to my face instead of on top of my monitor.
The core of my setup hasn't changed, but I added a couple of Space Bar organizers (When they were much cheaper and still in stock) to get a little extra space for keyboards to slide under when I'm not testing a new one. On my Mac, I swapped out my Apple Wired Keyboard for a Logitech Illuminated Keyboard and rather like it. Still rocking the Performance Mouse MX though.
On the Windows side, I upgraded to a 256GB OCZ Vertex 4 SSD last year, and can vouch for how much of a performance improvement an SSD makes. My Logitech G9x has taken a backseat to the wireless Razer Mamba, and my old Logitech G19 finally died, so I opted for a more modest Logitech G510 instead (although here you see the Moshi Luna I've been testing, which is a really nice keyboard if you like scissor keys?it's not even bad for gaming, which surprised me.)
Out of frame is my home server/HTPC. I got into the nitty gritty there last year, but I've been meaning to rebuild it or buy a NAS instead. Also out of frame is my Herman Miller Embody office chair?probably the most expensive purchase I've made for my workspace (especially considering I got the desk at a University surplus store 10 years ago for $30?bonus, it has great cable management channels on the top and in the back!) but when you sit in front of a screen all day for work and play, you need a good chair.
What's your best time-saving shortcut/life hack?
Being fearless with the delete key. Seriously, I was pretty good at keeping my inboxes trim and responding when I needed to, but when I joined the team at Lifehacker those skills were put to the test. I still try to reply whenever I can, but if I didn't have such an itchy delete finger, I'd be drowning in email. My biggest time-saver though, one I suggest everyone use: Chill out, relax, and do your thing. Angry at something, or someone on the internet is wrong? Resist the urge to engage and think instead about how much time you'd waste on it. Then move on and do awesome stuff instead. It's a better use of our limited time.
More pragmatically, I happily pay to automate tasks I'd rather not spend the time or money to do myself. Whether it's Amazon Subscribe and Save deliveries, regular vegetable boxes from my local door-to-door grocery delivery service, (something I've discussed in the past) I'm happy to spend as the time I get back from the task is worth it. After all, that's what being "productive" is really about: getting the things you have to do done quickly so you can spand time doing the things you want to do.
What's your favorite to-do list manager?
I'm currently using Astrid on my Android phone (Astrid notifications are pretty much the only ones I allow, and I've gotten accustomed to calling a line of tiny Astrid icons in my notification bar a "squid attack") and iPad. I even keep it open as a pinned tab. I still use Wunderkit as my personal idea bank, even though it's going away soon. I'm still looking for a new idea bank?considering Asana or even Wunderlist, since many of Wunderkit's features are in Wunderlist 2, but I'm always on the lookout for a better to-do app.
I also use Springpad to keep track of things around the web that I want to make note of?recipes, gadgets to look into, products to save up for, things like that. The only list I tend not to use something digital for is my grocery list?I've tried, but for some reason I just can't get into it. For that it's pen and paper, every time.
Besides your phone and computer, what gadget can't you live without?
Even though I have a (sorely underpowered) XBMC HTPC, I use my Xbox 360 to stream Netflix, Amazon Video on Demand, and Hulu. I'm more of a PC gamer, but when I need to get away from the keys, my consoles are there for me. I have an Apple TV in the bedroom, but it sees less use. Other than that, my newly-acquired Fitbit has been instrumental to getting me off my butt more often, which I definitely need to do. Oh, and I can't leave out my Sony Alpha NEX-5N, one of the best purchases I've made in a long time. I love that camera.
What everyday thing are you better at than everyone else?
I don't know if I'm better than everyone else, but I'm a pretty mean typist. I mean, I type really fast, and touch-type at that. I can hold entire conversations with people, making eye contact, and my fingers fly across the keyboard at the same time. It's pretty handy.
I'm also kind of a clean freak?I clean as I go along when I'm cooking, I'm a little obsessive about mise en place, and I'm pretty well known for having all of the dishes in the dishwasher and ready to clean by the time I'm finished plating dinner. The same is true for everything else: I try to do things when they occur to me and as quickly as possible so I can get them off my plate, so that's how I tend to approach everything: life, work, play. That way I can free up my mind to think about something else.
What do you listen to while you work?
Pandora fills the quiet gaps for me, and I happily pay for a Pandora One subscription. When I'm not listening to one of my 15 or so Pandora stations, I head over to the previously mentioned Noon Pacific (if you don't get his weekly playlists every monday at?you guessed it?noon, pacific, you're missing out) or another favorite, This Is My Jam. I also really dig Relaux's curated playlists, which I've also praised before. If I'm head-down writing, I've probably saved a two-hour Freefall Radio podcast or two to help get the words flowing. Give it a try and subscribe?you won't be disappointed.
When I'm not in the mood for music, I usually try to fill my time with some of my favorite audio and video podcasts from the folks at TWiT and Revision3. I subscribe to entirely too many to name, but you can see them in this iTunes snap here.
What's your sleep routine like?
I have the early shift at Lifehacker, so I'm up every morning around 6am ET (3am PT) so we can start our broadcast day at 7am ET (4am PT.) For that reason I try to be in bed around 11pm or so the night before, just to get a decent amount of sleep. That'll probably surprise my old coworkers considering how I hated being in the office early?I tend to be a night owl, and definitely stay up late on the weekends. I tend to feel more creative and connected after dark, so I tackle most of my personal projects in the wee hours.
Are you more of an introvert or an extrovert?
I'm the most talkative introvert you may ever meet. I used to think I was an extrovert because I enjoyed being around people so much, but even though I love it, I need to retreat to a private space to recharge, not the other way around. When I plan trips to visit friends or go to a party with people I don't know, I'm usually stressed out beforehand, even if I actually really want to go. You wouldn't know it once I'm there, but I probably agonized over it before I left. That's not to say I don't love it once I'm there?I just need a kick in the pants to get out the door and have a good time sometimes.
Is there anyone you'd kill to see answer these same questions?
We've had some really incredible people do How I Work, but I'd love to see how Maya Angelou or Nikki Giovanni works, or maybe current NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, since all three of them are people of note that I've looked up to since I was a child. Speaking of science, I've been following Brian Greene's work since I was an undergrad. I'm curious how he gets things done, and if it's anything like the offices of other physicists I know.
I'd also love to see how Alton Brown works, partially because I hope he'd answer our questions on Post It notes like he does on Twitter. Oh, and just for kicks? I'd love to know how Hayao Miyazaki gets things done. He's extremely prolific and very busy, but also makes time to recharge and nurture his creativity, even when he has a billion things to do and projects to work on.
What's the best advice you've ever received?
Back in 2006, I was struggling with living a kind of double life. On the one hand, I was working in tech and going to grad school, trying to decide if I wanted to work in an office with enterprise technology for a living. On the other hand, I was already writing on my own, and really wanted to that into a career. I reached out to Xeni Jardin, founding partner and co-editor of Boing Boing (still one of my favorite sites), on a whim for advice as a fledgling writer looking for tips from someone more experienced. She replied:
Find untold stories, things that fascinate you, and do your best to tell them honestly. There's so little truth in the world these days, any small morsel of it is a precious thing that will be appreciated, and find a grateful audience.
Don't look for "big" stories, just look for ones that matter to you. The more you work at it, the better your work will be, and the more people will see it.
I'm still working on it, but every day I appreciate her words. I'd also share a quote from the 8th century father of Zen, Shitou Xiqian: "The vast sky is not hindered by the floating clouds." Something else I try to remember, especially in this line of work.
Is there anything else you'd like to add that might be interesting to readers/fans?
I've often been accused of being a robot. Mostly it's because I have a nasty habit of responding to emails in the middle of the night, staying up late working, writing dozens of articles on multiple sites, and in general looking like I never sleep. I have no comment on these baseless accusations.
Feb. 12, 2013 ? Chicks that stock up on their five-a-day outshine their love rivals in later life, a new study shows.
Published February 12 by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and University of Cambridge, the study reveals that male hihi birds develop more colourful and attractive breeding feathers if they receive a nest diet rich in carotenoids -- natural pigments found mainly in fruit and vegetables.
Scientists looked at the effects of newborn nutrition on male plumage in the rare New Zealand hihi (Notiomystis concta) over the course of a year. The paper was published in Proceedings of The Royal Society B.
ZSL and University of Cambridge PhD student Leila Walker says: "We first hand-fed baby hihi birds either a carotenoid supplement -- natural pigments used to colour yellow, orange and red -- or a more complete dietary supplement. Then we looked at the effect this had on male breeding feather colour once those chicks had grown and moulted into their adult plumage."
All nestlings initially develop female-like plumage and fledge at around one month old. Youngsters then moult their body feathers at about four months old, during which time the males obtain their breeding features. Colourful plumage is an important factor in a bird's breeding success as it demonstrates the strong health of a bird to females.
ZSL Research Fellow Dr. John Ewen says: "We saw that nestlings receiving more carotenoids were brighter as adults. This was a combined result of the carotenoid-rich dietary supplement they received, and the carotenoids they obtained as part of a natural diet fed to them by their parents."
Research on hihi has highlighted how sensitive an individual's life is to experiences faced as a nestling. Scientists are now gaining an idea of the information content of different plumage ornaments used in breeding. The next steps will be to manipulate these signals in adult birds to further test the effects on mating success.
Almost all wild hihi populations require conservation support in terms of food supplementation. ZSL will continue to work on narrowing down on a diet that produces the most, and best quality, offspring to help rebuild high numbers of this most brightly coloured of New Zealand birds.
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Every week, we share the shortcuts, workspaces, and productivity tips of our favorite experts and internet personalities. This week, however, we're giving you guys a glimpse into how we work, and all the tips and tricks that keep our blogging wheels spinning. Today, I'm running through my favorite gear, gadgets, apps, devices, and tricks to stay productive when I'm on, and to have fun when I'm off. 
Location: Washington, DC
On the Windows side, I upgraded to a 256GB OCZ Vertex 4 SSD last year, and can vouch for how much of a performance improvement an SSD makes. My Logitech G9x has taken a backseat to the wireless Razer Mamba, and my old Logitech G19 finally died, so I opted for a more modest Logitech G510 instead (although here you see the Moshi Luna I've been testing, which is a really nice keyboard if you like scissor keys?it's not even bad for gaming, which surprised me.)
I'm currently using Astrid on my Android phone (Astrid notifications are pretty much the only ones I allow, and I've gotten accustomed to calling a line of tiny Astrid icons in my notification bar a "squid attack") and iPad. I even keep it open as a pinned tab. I still use Wunderkit as my personal idea bank, even though it's going away soon. I'm still looking for a new idea bank?considering Asana or even Wunderlist, since many of Wunderkit's features are in Wunderlist 2, but I'm always on the lookout for a better to-do app.
Even though I have a (sorely underpowered) XBMC HTPC, I use my Xbox 360 to stream Netflix, Amazon Video on Demand, and Hulu. I'm more of a PC gamer, but when I need to get away from the keys, my consoles are there for me. I have an Apple TV in the bedroom, but it sees less use. Other than that, my newly-acquired Fitbit has been instrumental to getting me off my butt more often, which I definitely need to do. Oh, and I can't leave out my Sony Alpha NEX-5N, one of the best purchases I've made in a long time. I love that camera.
Pandora fills the quiet gaps for me, and I happily pay for a Pandora One subscription. When I'm not listening to one of my 15 or so Pandora stations, I head over to the previously mentioned Noon Pacific (if you don't get his weekly playlists every monday at?you guessed it?noon, pacific, you're missing out) or another favorite, This Is My Jam. I also really dig Relaux's curated playlists, which I've also praised before. If I'm head-down writing, I've probably saved a two-hour Freefall Radio podcast or two to help get the words flowing. Give it a try and subscribe?you won't be disappointed.
We've had some really incredible people do How I Work, but I'd love to see how Maya Angelou or Nikki Giovanni works, or maybe current NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, since all three of them are people of note that I've looked up to since I was a child. Speaking of science, I've been following Brian Greene's work since I was an undergrad. I'm curious how he gets things done, and if it's anything like the offices of other physicists I know.